Development finance calculator

How to use the development finance calculator

Enter the land or site cost, the build cost, professional and other costs (architects, planning, building control, warranties, surveys and similar), a contingency, and the gross development value (GDV), which is what the finished scheme should be worth. Then set the lender limits you want to test. The calculator shows the total project cost, the profit before finance costs, and the maximum loan under each limit.

The default lender limits are only examples to start from. Every lender sets its own and will adjust them for your experience, the scheme, the location and the planning position. Finance costs such as interest and fees are not included in the profit figure, so the real margin will be lower.

Loan to cost and loan to GDV explained

Loan to cost (LTC)

LTC is the loan as a percentage of the total project cost. It shows how much of your own money is at risk in the scheme. A lender capping the loan at a percentage of cost expects you to fund the rest.

Loan to gross development value (LTGDV)

LTGDV is the loan as a percentage of the completed value. It protects the lender if values are lower than expected when the scheme is finished. Lenders usually apply both tests and lend the lower of the two results, which is what the calculator shows as the likely maximum loan.

How development finance is paid out

Development loans are normally released in stages as the build progresses. A monitoring surveyor checks the work before each drawdown, and the lender typically pays for work already completed. That means you need cash to get each stage going. Our guide to development finance drawdowns explains how staged funding works in practice.

Planning the exit

A development loan is repaid by selling the finished units or refinancing onto longer-term finance. If sales are slower than expected, development exit finance can give more time, but it works best when it is planned rather than used as a rescue.

Development finance across Hampshire and the South Coast

We arrange development funding for schemes in Fareham, Portsmouth, Southampton, Gosport, Havant, Winchester, Chichester and across the UK, from single plots and conversions to small residential schemes. Send us your appraisal and we will point out anything a lender is likely to question before it goes in front of one.